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Fort Worth Students Mingle With Former World Leaders

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FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) – Sunday offered Fort Worth students a rare chance to mingle with two of the world’s most prominent former political leaders.

Former Mexican President Vincente Fox and former Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien took to the stage at the Fort Worth Club to answer questions and discuss leadership.

“That’s the purpose of this series, is to have access to leaders, to world leaders and to learn about the human side, to learn about the problems they faced,” Fox said.

Several students stood in line, eager to ask questions.

Fox faced many of the same questions he faced during his tenure as president from 2000 to 2006.

He is infamous for his public fight against the Mexico drug cartels.

After he left his post as president, violence in Mexico elevated to an all-time high. Fox maintains his stance that the United States shares responsibility for the problem.

“We share the problem, we must share the solution,” he said. “We should commit further, on both sides of the border, not only to send funds down to Mexico to keep the war there but also to assume the responsibility here of reducing consumption and No. 2, of reducing the distribution.”

While students got answers to many of their questions, the hope of the Fox and Chretien was to remind students what public service is really about.

“There’s a lot of rewards for an individual serving in public life,” said Chretien. “ And most of us we can point at some successes during the time we were there that improved the quality of life of our citizens.”

For Fox, his hope is to inspire future leaders.

“It’s very important that they discover their leadership,” Fox said. “That they go within themselves and they understand how capable we all are we all human beings are.”

The Vicente Fox Presidential Series will feature global leaders speaking about global issues through November.